I built my home in '05 and made the mistake of using masonite siding. I'm now reaping some of the issues (rot), and of course continuous paint/pressure washing blah blah (I wanted brick from the jump but the wife didn't ). So I'm looking into having the home bricked up. I haven't contacted any masons yet, but I'm hoping for a little info before I do. I know I'll have to have a new footer for the brick to sit on. I live in SC does anyone have an idea of the size footer needed for this? Does the old siding need to come off and if so I assume I OSB should go on in place? What about digging the footer around water, telcomm, gas? My house is a two story with covered porch and deck so there's roofing is there a way to brick that of put a fascia to look like the rest of the home? What other headaches am I probably looking at? All three of my hvac units are right against the brick curtain now so I assume I'll have to have them moved and re-connected? Thanks in advance.

The first thing you need to do is contact your local Building Department. They probably will require a permit for the work, and should be able to provide the details, such as minimum footing size requirements, etc. If they're not asleep, they'll also require that the new footings be tied to the existing footings with drilled/anchored steel rebar dowels. Make sure to tell all the contractors who bid the work that you will be paying them to conform to the Building Department requirements--there will likely be a low-baller or two who will tell you they don't need to follow "those silly City/County details", and they can save you some $$$ by taking a few short cuts. And always ask for references, and check everyone's licensing records.

If it were mine, I'd leave the existing siding in place, but wash or paint it first with a mildew/mold resistant product. Don't forget weep holes, and brick ties, and proper flashing if you want the finished product to perform properly. And make sure to be sitting down when you open the bids, as they won't be very small.

The first thing you need to do is contact your local Building Department. They probably will require a permit for the work, and should be able to provide the details, such as minimum footing size requirements, etc. If they're not asleep, they'll also require that the new footings be tied to the existing footings with drilled/anchored steel rebar dowels. Make sure to tell all the contractors who bid the work that you will be paying them to conform to the Building Department requirements--there will likely be a low-baller or two who will tell you they don't need to follow "those silly City/County details", and they can save you some $$$ by taking a few short cuts. And always ask for references, and check everyone's licensing records.

If it were mine, I'd leave the existing siding in place, but wash or paint it first with a mildew/mold resistant product. Don't forget weep holes, and brick ties, and proper flashing if you want the finished product to perform properly. And make sure to be sitting down when you open the bids, as they won't be very small.

Thanks for the info. I understand all the permitting stuff. I know you obviously haven't seen the job, but I have it guesstimated at about 38K bricks (It took 5180 sqft of siding) the house is about 3500 sqft down and 1500 up. Would you mind off the cuff ball parking a price? Bricks are about 290/K and going rate for a mason around here is 350/400 per K. There is about 200-225 feet of footer to be dealt with.
I'm guessing $30-35K or am I way off?
Thanks again.

I'm not about to "guesstimate" what your job will cost, but with the unit/cost numbers you've provided and a little more work, you should be able to do the arithmetic yourself. Just use the brick manufacturer's/dealer's data to come up with an accurate total brick count (throwing in a reasonable waste factor), once you've chosen a style and size of brick. The fact that your upstairs is considerably smaller than the lower level means you will need some form of continuous steel lintels where the walls don't align with those on the lower level.

In round numbers, a buck a brick really sounds high to me. In 1992 I had a local mason install used bricks that I furnished on a 500 S.F. addition that I built, and he charged me a grand total of $400. Total wall area was around 300 S.F., but I have no idea how many bricks we used (I had previously removed them from the house, and cleaned all of the mortar off of them, before building the addition).

I'm not about to "guesstimate" what your job will cost, but with the unit/cost numbers you've provided and a little more work, you should be able to do the arithmetic yourself. Just use the brick manufacturer's/dealer's data to come up with an accurate total brick count (throwing in a reasonable waste factor), once you've chosen a style and size of brick. The fact that your upstairs is considerably smaller than the lower level means you will need some form of continuous steel lintels where the walls don't align with those on the lower level.

In round numbers, a buck a brick really sounds high to me. In 1992 I had a local mason install used bricks that I furnished on a 500 S.F. addition that I built, and he charged me a grand total of $400. Total wall area was around 300 S.F., but I have no idea how many bricks we used (I had previously removed them from the house, and cleaned all of the mortar off of them, before building the addition).

Okay thanks. I know there's a bunch of other factors mortar, sand, height of walls, etc, etc, etc and I didn't expect a quote or anything like that. I was just wondering if someone with experience thought I was over pricing, under pricing or whatever. Your "buck a brick" comment helps though. I live in a rural area so I think I'd be on the lower end of whatever the cost would be. Thanks again.

No it's not the only choice per say, but I hate stucco, and I want something PERMANENT. Hardi board would be permanent, but it seems like a heck of a lot of work also, and I'll still have to paint it every few years, and pressure wash each spring. You have another idea?